This and that about my life in Missouri, and the loves of my life... my family.

Saturday, March 13, 2010

I loved Memphis!

It had a small town in a big town, old time charm feel.

It was alive with Blues!

BB King – the flamboyant blues musician

It was alive with Rock n’ Roll!

Elvis Presley – the King of Rock n’ Roll

The trolleys were fun and a great way to get around.

(this photo was stolen off the internet – I somehow neglected to take a photo of Graceland!)

First stop was the tour of Graceland. I know….. it is so touristy. But we had to do it. And I am so glad we did.

Cameras were allowed but no flashes. So some of these pictures leave a bit to be desired.

Graceland is located in a not so great section of Memphis. He bought it for $100,000 in 1956. It is an impressive home, stuck in the 60’s.

My first memory of Elvis was his first appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show. I rememb I wasn’t allowed to see it. My parents ruled on the side of “wickedness” when it came to Elvis and Rock n’ Roll. I lived vicariously through my friends when I went to school the next day and listened to them swoon.

I had no idea that he was such a little man. Even when he “blimped” out before his death in the 70’s, he was not large by any standards.

He apparently loved mirrors. Many of the rooms were lined with mirrors. This is a stairwell… wall to ceiling with mirrors.

He gave generously to charities. I always struggle giving too much credit to celebrities who give. Mostly because they have so much to give! In relation to what we have and what we give, who is to say if they are really as generous as it seems.

What impressed me most was the walls of gold records and awards. Floor to ceiling. Room to room.

I snatched the above picture off the internet. With no flash allowed, my attempts at taking a picture came up with very scary results.

Elvis is buried at Graceland, along with his mom and dad and grandmother. He has a headstone there memorializing his twin brother, who died at childbirth.

Cars anyone? How about a museum of cars, motorcycles, a snowmobile on wheels, go carts, and a tractor?

His famous pink Cadillac. His mother’s favorite set of wheels.

A bedraggled me in front of the Lisa Marie. I have been placed just so to hide a maintenance guy who was scrubbing the plane down.

Then on to Beale Street. Why go to Beale Street?

To see the sights of night life.

To drink. We actually did very little of that on Beale Street.

I pointing at what looked to me to be a pimp. lol who knows.

To watch people. We did that a lot.

To listen to the blues.

And to eat!

We called cousin Lisa to ask where we should eat. Her immediate response was BB Kings! Then she let us in on a secret. “Tell the guy at the door that you want to go upstairs to Itta Bene.” What? “Ittabeena” (that’s what it sounded like to me). So here everyone was at the door waiting, paying a $5 cover charge to get in. We got the big guy at the door’s attention and said the magic word. “Ittabeena” And the doors of BB King was opened to us and we were ushered upstairs.

BB King was born in Itta Bene, Mississippi. The upstairs world is a restaurant where you can eat the best barbeque around, look down on the house band playing the blues without the music blaring so loudly that talk is impossible. I hear their steaks are good too. But we all had barbeque.

Autozone Park is the home of the Memphis Redbirds. s we stood watching a street entert

Next day, on a tip from Jim’s boss, we headed back down to Dyers on Beale for the best greasy hamburger, fries and onion rings around.

Back in 1912, the late Elmer "Doc" Dyer opened his own cafe and began to develop a secret cooking process for the uniquely delicious world famous burgers we still serve here today on Beale Street.

Legend has it that the "secret" was Doc Dyer's ageless cooking grease. This famous grease , strained daily, has continued to produce our juicy Dyer's Burgers for almost a century now.

(taken from dyersonbeale.com)

I have a little tip of my own to share. If you are in a hurry, don’t go to Dyers. But if you want a unique eating experience, go to Dyers! I’m sure glad we did.

Up next? A visit with another legend named Cy and Muse.

I’m heading to the airport for a trip to visit with sis in Arizona. We are going to do some hiking in Sedona. Of course I will share!

OMG Im so jealous you got to go to Graceland, I want to go so bad but I will never get too cuz hubby thinks its a waste of time :o( thanks for sharing the pictures especially the ones of the good looking food, seems like your having a blast I cant wait to see Arizona pics, stay safe!!

wonderful trip you had in Memphis! Definitely would have to go and see Graceland if you are in the area, I'm sure it was worth it at least one time to see it. Makes you wonder if he had lived, if he would have modernized it a bit more or kept things in the 1960s. But then of course if he had lived, one would probably not be touring it, LOL

I'm going to remember that tip about BB Kings if I'm ever in the Memphis area.

when i got off the plane headed for Jopetes house, the first thing i saw in the termal was a Huge bottle of Jack Daniels in a display case. Garceland would be nice to see, and Beal street is where a ton of musicans came from.I saw Chet Atkins in a show in Portland years ago, he said that he had this ole freind that was always lost. so him and this other guy found him a home,he said they took him to Beal Street and thats where he made his home singing and playing .. Great Pictures as always ..Have a blast..JR

Weather Bug

Search This Blog

About Me

It is tough trying to explain me. My husband of 40 years would say it is not possible. My three children would definitely say it is not possible. I think the only ones who can explain me would be my 10 grandchildren. They sum it up in two words - Silly Grandma.